Tag Archives: fluoride

The issue of adding fluoride to the local water supply is once
again before a local water district.

During Tuesday night’s meeting, the Manchester Water District
Board of Commissioners heard public comments for both the anti- and
pro- fluoridation camps. No action was taken, but the record will
be open for further comment on the issue through September 10.

Former Manchester resident Tyler Giantvalley Eaton began his
10-minute presentation with anecdotal evidence on the effects of
fluoridated water, citing that since moving to Bellingham where the
water is not fluoridated, when he comes home to visit his mother he
feels ill, something he attributes to fluoride sensitivity.

“When I come back to eat my mother’s food, and she’s a great
cook I should add, I feel sick,” he said. “I began getting
interested and found there is a mountain of facts and propaganda to
wade through.”

Eaton, who was flanked by his mother and sister who both live in
Manchester, cited numerous arguments against fluoridating water
supplies including that elemental fluoride is reactive, the dosage
is hard to control and since it can be very hard and costly to
remove fluoride from water, the public cannot willingly opt out and
therefore adding fluoride violates the medical code of ethics.

Adding fluoride to the water first went to the voters in
Manchester in 1969 and was approved. Fluoride began being added to
the water supply in June of 1971, said Water District General
Manager Dennis O’Connell.

The Manchester Water District’s water supply contains .02 parts
per million of naturally occurring fluoride. The element is known
to have strengthening properties that can help prevent cavities,
although if too much is ingested it can be poisonous.

Sodium fluoride is added to increase the level to 1.0 ppm, the
current recommended level by the Washington State Department of
Health. Currently, about 65 percent of Washington State’s water
systems are fluoridated.

As mandated by state law the water supply must be tested each
day and the fluoride levels recorded.

Local dentist Richard Freiboth spoke in support of continued
water fluoridation. He cited that the practice is endorsed by the
American Dental Association and Centers for Disease Control and
likened it to fortifying other foods such as milk with vitamin D,
orange juice with vitamin c and salt with iodine.

“When I cut a persons tooth I can feel the difference when
they’ve been drinking fluoridated water,” he said.

Previous attempts have been made to disrupt fluoridation, in
June of 1992 and March of 1994. In April of 1994, a survey was
distributed to ratepayers and the response came back 6 to 1 in
favor of continuing fluoridation. A few months ago, O’Connell said,
the board had a person express a desire to stop fluoridation.

“The end game is that the board wants to do what the rate payers
want,” he said. Currently the Manchester Water District has a
little more than 3,300 ratepayers and serves a population of about
10,000 people.

Chair Steve Pedersen asked for the Board to keep the record open
for 60 days.

“Obviously there is a lot of information on both sides,” he
said. “I want a written reason on why we should overturn the
voters.”

Written information may be sent to Dennis O’Connell at the
Manchester Water District, 2081 Spring Ave. E, Port Orchard, WA
98366; (360) 871-0500.